Yet reminders of Lt. Charles "Bo" Harrison filled the dining room Wednesday at Saint Leo University. They could be seen in the bowed heads of the public officials as campus minister
Michael Cooper prayed for them to lead as servants, the way Harrison did. They could be heard in the Scripture reading, when Jesus washed his followers' feet and urged them to do the same for others.
They could be felt as lumps in the throat when the late sheriff's deputy's closest friends announced a scholarship in memory of a man who filled his hometown with a sweetness that rivaled his favorite dessert.
"For the past 25 days, we've mourned the cruel and senseless removal from our midst of a capable and dedicated law enforcement officer," university president Arthur Kirk said as guests finished their breakfasts of scrambled eggs, bacon, grits and coffee.
Harrison was shot in the back by a high-powered rifle as he sat in his patrol car June 1 and watched over an area known for drugs and gunfire.
It's also a highly diverse area where some residents mistrust the police.
Friends of the teen accused of pulling the trigger said he was enraged over the recent death of a friend who crashed his car during a police chase.
Harrison, who was black, was the one person who served as a bridge. Even the accused teen called his mother from jail to say he loved "Mr. Bo-Bo."
The leaders who gathered at Saint Leo for the president's annual breakfast and to announce the scholarship want folks to know that even though Bo Harrison is dead, his legacy lives.
They hope to instill it in the heart of a Pasco County minority student majoring in criminal justice at Saint Leo.
The scholarship would be supported by an endowment that Harrison's friends and former colleagues are building.
To establish the endowment, organizers need to raise at least $10,000 over three years. That sounds like a lot, but folks have been generous. So far, the effort has netted about $6,000. Law enforcement, fire rescue agencies and even individuals have chipped in.
Willie Broner, Harrison's best friend and the athletic director at Pasco High School, pledged $1,000 from a golf tournament set for August.
Depending on how much money comes in, scholarships also could be offered to students enrolled in the university's soon-to-be-launched master's program in criminal justice.
"The important thing is that people aren't allowed to forget," Sheriff Bob White said.
Another important thing is that minorities opt for careers in law enforcement.
Harrison was only one of 18 full-time minority deputies on a full-time force of 349. Only four were black.
Not that the Sheriff's Office, and even Harrison, weren't working fervently to change that.
Former Sheriff Lee Cannon tried hard, sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll said. White and his human resources staff have continued that effort.
"It's hard, because minorities are so sought that a lot of bigger agencies can pay them more," Doll said.
Dade City Police Chief Phil Thompson, a close friend of Harrison, said Harrison sometimes expressed frustration at the competition. Yet he never stopped recruiting.
"He would make a person understand what law enforcement is," said his daughter, Sandy Harrison. "You're already helping others; you have stability, benefits, opportunities for growth."
He also let them know what law enforcement isn't, or shouldn't be.
"It's not about going out and arresting people and shooting," his daughter said. "Too many people take police work out of context."
We will all benefit if students who earn the scholarship bearing Harrison's name also learn his values.
And who knows? Maybe someday they also can learn Harrison's recipe for his legendary peach cobbler.
- Lisa Buie is the editor of the central/east edition of the Pasco Times. You can reach her at 813 909-4604 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4604. Her e-mail address is buie@sptimes.com
